Inpatient acute care coding (hospital coding) is one of the best-paying sectors of the coding profession. If you're already performing some aspect of facility coding, the Advanced Hospital Coding (AHC) Program will fill in the gaps, making you a more marketable employee. These skills are essential to your successful completion of the American Health Information Management Association's (AHIMA) mastery-level credentialing exam, the Certified Coding Specialist (CCS®).

If you are currently working in a physician’s office or billing service, this program will give you the edge you need to advance in the workplace. Most hospitals will only hire coders with previous exposure to facility coding or who are already certified. Training on the job is a luxury most hospitals are unable to offer. Coders of all levels must undergo continuing education to stay current with the constantly changing regulations.

The AHC program covers advanced, hospital-specific coding and billing procedures and is designed to help students meet the challenge of today's changing standards. This program will utilize your existing knowledge of medical terminology and healthcare sciences. Your coding skills will be heightened and focused, preparing you for employment testing and successful completion of the CCS exam.

When you've successfully completed this program, you'll:

• Understand how health information travels within departments of a facility
• Be able to define the roles and responsibilities of a coder in both inpatient and outpatient facilities
• Assign ICD-10-CM/PCS and CPT/ HCPCS Level II codes and modifiers
• Know how to interpret clinical documentation using your knowledge of medical terminology, anatomy/physiology, and disease processes
• Select codes according to Uniform Hospital Discharge Data Sets (UHDDS) definitions and official coding guidelines
• Evaluate the effect of code selection on Diagnosis Related Group (DRG) assignment, and verify DRG assignment based on Prospective Payment System (PPS) definitions
• Indicate Medical Necessity by linking an appropriate diagnosis with the procedure or service provided.
• Understand reimbursement methodologies
• Describe documentation rules and regulations

Coding

• Apply knowledge of ICD-10-CM conventions, guidelines, and instructional notations to locate, assign, and correctly sequence codes
• Apply knowledge of ICD-10-PCS conventions and guidelines to locate, assign, and correctly sequence codes
• Apply knowledge of CPT guidelines to locate, assign, and correctly sequence codes
• Facilitate data retrieval by recognizing when more than one code is required to adequately classify a given condition

Data Identification

• Read and interpret clinical documentation to identify codeable diagnoses and procedures
• Apply your knowledge of anatomy and physiology, pathophysiology, pharmacology, and diagnostic and procedural terminology to assign accurate codes

Regulatory Guidelines

• Apply Uniform Hospital Discharge Data Set (UHDDS) definitions to select accurate codes
• Determine the appropriate principal diagnosis for patients who have more than one ailment
• Use the Prospective Payment System to confirm a DRG assignment
• Prevent fraud by maintaining approved coding principles and guidelines, including the National Correct Coding Initiative (NCCI) 
• Use the Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) Payment Groups to confirm ASC assignment and ensure appropriate reimbursement
• Use the Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) to appropriately assign HCPCS codes for outpatient Medicare reimbursement

Data Quality

• Clarify conflicting, ambiguous, or missing information appearing in a health record by querying the appropriate physician
• Participate in quality assessment to ensure continuous improvement in ICD-10-CM/PCS and CPT coding and collection of accurate health data
• Demonstrate the ability to recognize and report coding-quality issues
• Apply policies and procedures on clinical documentation and coding that are consistent with official coding guidelines
• Contribute to the development of facility-specific coding policies and procedures
• Understand internal and external audit findings

Facility coding (hospital coding) is one of the best-paying sectors of the coding profession. If you're already performing some aspect of facility coding, the Advanced Hospital Coding (AHC) program will fill in the gaps, making you a more marketable employee. If you're currently working in a physician’s office or other ambulatory care setting, this program will give you the edge you need to advance in the workplace.

Hospital coding is rarely an entry-level position, and most hospital coders are required to be certified. The AHC program covers advanced, hospital-specific coding and billing procedures and is designed to help students meet the challenge of today's changing standards. This program will utilize your existing knowledge of medical terminology and healthcare sciences. In addition, your coding skills will be heightened and focused, preparing you for employment testing and successful completion of the CCS exam.

Upon registering, you are given six months to complete the program.

I. Hospital Structure, Billing, and Insurance

II. Ethics and HIPAA Administrative Simplification

III. Inpatient Acute Care Diagnosis Coding

IV. Regulatory Guidelines and Reporting Requirements for Acute (Inpatient) Care

V. ICD-10-PCS Inpatient Procedure Coding

VI. Regulations, Guidelines, and Coding for Ambulatory Care

VII. Data Quality, Compliance, and Auditing

VIII. Career Roadmap

IX. Certified Coding Specialist (CCS®) Certification Exam Prep

This program is compatible with the Windows XP and later operating systems and IE 7 and later browsers.  It can be taken on either a Mac or a PC; however, most medical offices currently use PCs.

Adobe Flash Player and Adobe Acrobat Reader are required for this program.

Click here to download the Acrobat Reader.
Click here to download the Flash Player.

The following textbooks will be provided by ed2go:

• Coding and Reimbursement for Hospital Inpatient Services
  
• Professional Review Guide for the CCS/CCS-P Examination (1yr of access to e-book)
  

Students are responsible for the following:

Students should have the current year's version of the following materials for the Advanced Hospital Coding & CCS Prep Course.  Before purchasing, please check the AHIMA website for the Allowable Code Books List for the CCS certification examination.

Materials:

• Current Procedural Terminology (CPT)
• Healthcare Professional Coding System (HCPCS) Level II
• ICD-10-CM
• ICD-10-PCS

The Advanced Hospital Coding program is not an entry-level program. This program is designed specifically for students with previous coding experience or education, and for students who have completed either the ed2go Administrative Medical Specialist with Medical Billing and Coding or the Medical Billing and Coding program by itself.

Advanced Hospital Coding students should have:

• High school diploma/GED
• Minimum two years of experience with medical terminology, anatomy, physiology, pathology
• ICD-9-CM coding experience or ICD-10-CM/PCS coding experience or previous training
• CPT/HCPCS Level II coding experience or previous training

Certification

If you intend on enrolling to take the Certified Coding Specialist (CCS) examination, you must meet one of the following requirements:

• Have one of the following credentials: RHIA®, RHIT®, or CCS®/CCS-P® OR
• Complete a coding training program that teaches anatomy & physiology, pathophysiology, pharmacology, medical terminology, reimbursement methodology, intermediate/ advanced ICD diagnostic / procedural coding OR
• Perform a minimum of two (2) years of related coding experience directly applying codes OR
• Have another coding credential from a certifying organization plus one (1) year coding experience directly applying codes

Important Note:  If you do not qualify for the CCS exam, you may be eligible for the Certified Coding Associate (CCA®) an entry-level certification exam offered by AHIMA or the American Association of Professional Coders Apprentice level certification, the Certified Professional Coder Apprentice (CPC-A) or Certified Inpatient Coder (CIC^TM).  This course will prepare you for those certifications as well, and you’ll find more information about them in the Certification Prep lesson at the end of the course.

1.  Can I register for courses if I am an international student?

Yes, because ed2go courses are online you never have to actually travel to the school. Most schools offer telephone or online registration.

2.  How long does it take to complete a course?

All of our courses are self-paced and open enrollment, so you can start them when you want and finish them at your own pace. Upon registering, you're given six months to complete this course. 

3.  Do I have to buy additional materials?

If you don't have access to current coding books, you'll be responsible for obtaining them.

4.  Does this course prepare for National Certification?

Yes, the Advanced Hospital Coding course prepares students to sit for the Certified Coding Specialist exam offered by AHIMA.

5.  Can I get financial assistance?

ed2go courses are non-credit courses, so they do not qualify for federal aid. In some states, vocational rehab or workforce development boards will pay for qualified students to take our courses.

6.  What happens when I complete the course?

Upon successful completion of the course, you will be awarded a certificate of completion.

7.  Am I guaranteed a job?

ed2go courses will provide you with the skills you need to obtain an entry-level position in most cases. We don't provide direct job placement services, but our facilitators and career counselors will help you build your resume and are available to give advice on finding your first job. Facilitators will also be available to use as a professional reference upon completion of the program. Potential students should always do research on the job market in their area before registering.

8.  Who will be my instructor?

Each student is paired up with a facilitator for one-on-one interaction. The facilitator will be available (via e-mail) to answer any questions you may have and to provide feedback on your performance. All of our facilitators are successful working professionals in the fields in which they teach.

9.  What software or hardware do I need in order to take online courses and what are the system requirements?

In order to take our online courses, you must have access to a computer and the Internet. You can access the program contents from any Web-enabled computer. You don't have to use the same computer to log-in to the program every time. We recommend that you have a word-processing program (Microsoft Word is best) and the latest version of Internet Explorer.

10.  Can I use a Mac?

Yes, you can use a Mac for this course.

11.  How can I get more information about the course?

If you have questions that are not answered on our website, please feel free to contact us via LIVE chat (click the button toward the top of the page). If you are visiting us during non-business hours, please feel free to send us a question using the "Contact Us" form to the right. You may also call us at 1-855-520-6806. We will answer your questions promptly.

12.  When can I start the course?
Our programs are all open enrollment. You can register and start the program as soon as you are ready.

Please note:  Once the course curriculum is accessed online or through submission of a material shipment confirmation, refunds cannot be issued.

13.  What if I don't have enough time to complete my course within the time frame provided?

The time allotted to complete your program has been calculated based on the number of hours for each program, so don't worry too much about not completing in time. If, after a concerted effort, you are still unable to complete, your Student Advisor will help you work out a suitable completion date. Please note that a fee may be charged for an extension.